The JJCode
by zhong ru
Summary: Set in Jurong Junior College, Singapore, a whirlwind chase by Robert Langdon unfolds around the college to solve the mysterious case of the death of a well-known traid member. The mafia, the college's history and artefacts get entangled with the case.
1. Chapter 1

PROLOGUE

It was two o'clock in the morning. A man, in his early twenties, dressed in a black smooth trench coat, walked briskly towards the building. Taking care to avoid detection, he had chosen the route that intersected with the gloomy and old HDB flats, which was dimly lit with incense every other unit. He was not about to take the risk of ruin everything now by going the other way, which meant being exposed to the bright lights of the petrol station just outside the building.

_No_, he thought. _The Boss will not like that_. He thought of the Boss with so much contempt, yet in his heart he had much admiration, and fear, for the man. This was the last step of the plan, and he had been given the honour of executing it. Clearly, he reasoned, he was the chosen one for the Boss' inheritance.

The Boss, being rich and powerful, was however, old. He had once, in a very casual fashion, let word that one of his guys would eventually inherit his riches and title, and it was all up to their performance to decide who would get the coveted title.

As the man proceeded nearer and nearer to the building, his mind whirled with such thoughts of getting the title and the money that his hands grew numb with excitement. He calmed himself down by thinking through the plan over again in his head. It did little to help. He had already known the plan by heart and it was already _infused_ in him.

Finally, he reached the side gate. He stopped and took a deep breath. Under the moonlight, the metallic letters which spelled the name of the building gleamed beautifully. JURONG JUNIOR COLLEGE, it read. The man felt his heart thumping in his throat. He swallowed hard. Why was he scared now? He had gone through the plan so many times; it was ridiculous to be scared now. Was it because this was his alma mater? But he hated this place, so why would he be afraid to commit a crime here? He should be happy instead. Or could it be…?

With a crack of his neck, he waved those thoughts away. He had no other choice, all he could do now is to concentrate, and after that, he would be the rightful heir…

Placing one leg halfway on the side gate and both arms on the top, he hoisted himself over the gate and landed with a soft thump. He stood up quickly, and looked nervously around. Good, no one had noticed him. Pulling his trench coat closer to him, he walked purposefully into the compounds of the college. The air seemed to grow humid around him, as though memories of the place had closed around him. He knew that at this hour, the security guard would be sleeping in the canteen with a few lights on, and he had to avoid that place. _Or lose that title._

Moving stealthily across the car park, the man finally reached his destination. The General Office of the school came into sight. Standing in front of the General Office, the man took out the key that had been given to him. Fingers shivering, he inserted the key into the keyhole.

_It'll be over soon,_ he thought. _One last step…_

To his utter disappointment, the door did not click open. A pang of fright came over him. He cannot afford to fail now! He tried again, but the door did not open still. Frantically, he looked left and right, but there, in front of him was the only door! There were shutters, but they were not in the plan!

Suddenly, pained seared through his whole body and warm blood began to flow down his back, tricking down his leg. He had been pierced from the back, and the pain was over powering him, he could not shout, he could not speak…

"Pathetic."

A voice came from behind him as he fell to the ground. A hooded figure was standing halfway on the spiral staircase, just outside the staff room. The hooded figure began to descend, and as he did, the man started to crawl away, struggling with all his might.

"That's the best that you can do? And you expect to be the heir of the Boss?" the hooded figure asked, then gave a howl of laughter, which echoed loudly in the cavity of the Administrative Block, as though not expecting an answer.

_The Boss?_ He thought. And then it hit him like a rock. He had been double crossed.

"Who…who are you?" the man asked fearfully, as he tried to crawl further away, leaving a bloody trail. "Why-"

"Silence!" the hooded figure demanded. "You have no right to question me, for I am acting on orders on behalf of the Boss!"

"No," the man said. He could now stand up, but walked unsteadily. The hooded figure had landed in front of him and they were just two meters way from each other. "No, it can't be…"

"You shall die," the hooded figure snarled, and inched closer towards him. "Within minutes, you shall die. The knife I pierced you with has been smeared with cobra venom, courtesy of the Boss."

The man knew it must be true now. Many a times he had seen this classic attack by his Boss, but he never thought that he would someday be on the receiving end of it.

"But why kill me now? Here? Why?" the man asked. He could feel the agony in his body as the venom spread.

"Why, I thought _you_ should know better," the hooded figure said quietly.

_No. No way._

"Seems like you _do_ know. Well, goodbye then," the hooded figure said and turned on the spot to leave.

"NOOOO!!" the man shouted desperately. "SECURITY! SECURITY!"

"Security's dead. And," the hooded figure said coldly. "Being agitated will make you die faster."

It was true, he could feel his vision blurring, then coming into sight, his heart beating irregularly, not to mention cold sweat dripping down his face…

As a last resort, the man lunged towards the hooded figure and pulled the hood off. The man fell backwards when he saw the face underneath the hood.

"No way! You!" the man pointed at his attacker with shock.

"That's right, it's me," the hooded figure said without even flinching. "Although I do regret that you had to see my face before you die."

That said, the hooded figure kicked the man hard in his stomach and fled into the darkness, leaving the man struggling on the floor. He had been double crossed, and left to die alone. He shut his eyes hard in both pain and anger.

_I have to expose them. I have to. But how? _

Then he thought of it.

When it was all done, the man struggled to the canteen and lay beside the dead security guard. With his last dying breath, he prayed that all would be uncovered.


	2. Chapter 2

1

"Good afternoon, Mr Langdon."

Harvard Professor Robert Langdon awoke with a start. Blinking, he looked up for the voice that greeted him.

"Mr Langdon, sir. Welcome to Singapore. I'm First Sergeant Fred from the Singapore Police Force and I'm here to escort you to _the_ destination." A plain-clothes policeman, around 25 years old, stood right in front of Robert, beckoning him to follow.

"Please, just call me Robert." Robert stood up, and yawned. It was 12 noon at Terminal 3 of the Changi International Airport, and Robert could have sworn he had only closed his eyes for 5 minutes after touchdown. And now here he was, rushing off to the next destination again.

Not that he was not used to travelling though; he had been travelling around the USA and Europe giving lectures and attending seminars ever since the last Pope election incident, which almost wiped out the whole of Vatican City. This trip, however, took him to the far south-east, to a little island called Singapore. Robert had heard much of this place, but had never ventured into the eastern world in all his 45 years.

_Bloody jetlag. I should really be sleeping now._

"Sure, Mr Robert, sir. Follow me. Our vehicle is waiting for us just outside gate 1," Sergeant Fred replied with a smile, walking towards the gate. "And sorry for our tardiness, sir, our team was having some difficulty this morning deciding who got the privilege of escorting you."

"And I guess you were the unlucky one?" Robert asked, half-wishing Sergeant Fred did not just imply that he was a burden to them.

"No, sir!" Sergeant Fred looked back, shocked. "I've never been so happy to go on OPS, sir. You see, our team is very happy that you agreed to help us, and everyone wants to be your PA. Did I mention that I was assigned to you as your PA?"

"No, but now I know," Robert said. _Great, and now I'm stuck with a fan boy._ Robert continued, "So I assume we're going straight to my hotel first, before proceeding to the crime scene, yes?"

"Sorry sir, we have orders from above that we are to bring you straight to the scene, get a mission brief by our officer in-charge, before you can rest in your suite. We'll transport your luggage to your suite for you," Sergeant Fred replied apologetically. "And I'm sorry you haven't had the chance to admire our brand new Terminal 3 as well."

That was true. Robert had landed at the best airport in the whole world and without even admiring it, he was being rushed off again. Taking a quick glance around him, Robert was sure he would award this airport the title of Best Airport too, if he ever became one of the judges.

The brand new 380,000 square metres terminal, located directly opposite Terminal 2, is a seven-storey building with three being the basement and four above ground levels. The thing that marveled visitors most about Terminal 3 is the roof of the building. Made up of 900 skylights with reflector panels, these glassy panes automatically adjust themselves to provide a uniform natural lighting to the building. The result is a soft warm glow for the entire day.

"We're here, sir." Sergeant Fred said suddenly, jolting Robert from his momentary daydream from looking at the beautiful roof.

"Oh, all right." Robert exited the automated glass doors and was stunned by the bright red Mazda 3 - a popular car choice among Singapore military personnel - greeting him. _Are we being a little attention seeking here? _

Then all at once, the June heat hit him like a tsunami. Hurriedly, Robert scrambled into the vehicle, escaping from the heat. A little attention was better than dying from heat exhaustion, he figured.

"I don't expect the weather to turn any cooler, huh?" Robert asked, frowning and wiping beads of perspiration off his forehead. _Damn these Harrison tweed blazers._

"No, sir," Fred entered the vehicle, taking the front seat. "Don't expect anything lesser than 30 degrees Celsius, sir, which is around 86 degrees Fahrenheit. And this is Duty Driver Corporal Steven. Never been happier to be on duty eh, Steven?"

"Never been happier, Sergeant!" Steven replied with a laugh. "Nice to meet you, sir."

"Erm, nice to meet you too. " Robert replied sloppily. _Am I like some sort of superstar now? I'm a lecturer on cryptology, for Christ's sake!_

Sweltering heat, swarming fan boys, spinning jetlag… "This had better be good," Robert muttered under his breath, and slumped into his seat.

"Oh, I'm sure this will be interesting for you, sir. You shall see," Sergeant Fred said, buckling-up. "JJC, please, Steven."

With a lood vroom of the engine, they were off, and Robert was still stunned that Sergeant Fred had heard his lament.


	3. Chapter 3

2

In half an hour, the red Mazda arrived at Jurong Junior College in style. With a jolt, the car was brought to an abrupt stop and woke Robert Langdon from his nap. Opening his eyes, he observed his surroundings and found himself in an open-air car park just opposite, around 10 metres away from, what seemed to him as a canteen.

The canteen of Jurong Junior College is located on the first storey of a two storey building, with the second storey being the school hall. The canteen boasts 10 stalls selling a variety of cuisine, from simple drink stalls to sophisticated Chinese and Western meals even to exotic Malay and Indian food; all reasonably priced, not to mention tasty. Seats are made of plastic and metal, and are clean most of the time. A small stage at the back of the canteen provides a place for students to showcase their talents like singing or reciting, and once a year, Student Councilor-elects would also use the stage to campaign for votes for a coveted seat in the Students' Council. Usually, this exciting part of the school would be bustling with campus life, and today, it is still bustling, but with the police force instead.

"I see you've evacuated all the students," Robert said, lifting one of those "POLICE" blue-and-white hazard tapes and ducking underneath, entering the crime scene.

"Not quite," Sergeant Fred followed suit, joining Robert in the canteen. "It's June, sir. School holidays. Anyway, no one dares to come back to the school since this incident. This way, sir."

Robert followed Sergeant Fred. They were at the front of the canteen, near the stalls, and appeared to be walking towards the back of the canteen, to the small stage. There were many policemen busying around the stage area but at where Robert was, he could not see what they were busy with. Robert tried peering over the policemen's head but was stopped in his tracks by Sergeant Fred.

"Sir, meet Major Alan Lee, Officer-in-Command for this operation. Sir, Mr Robert Langdon," Sergeant Fred introduced.

Robert looked back down and saw a man in his early thirties, muscular, tanned and had an air of superiority around him, but not intimidating. He had a strong look on his face, but Robert could tell that he was tired; the case must have been wearing him down.

"Ah, Mr Langdon. It was nice of you to come assist us at such a short notice. We're really glad you're here," Major Alan said, and held out a hand to Robert.

"Robert," Robert offered, shaking Major Alan's hand. _Strong grip._ "Well sir, I hope I can be of some help," he continued weakly.

"Just call me Alan," Major Alan said, settling himself into one of the plastic seats around a round table. "I'm sure you can, Robert. We've heard so much about you and I'm sure your skills in crypto can be put to good use. Do have a seat."

Robert sat down opposite Alan, and asked him curiously," So what is this case about anyway? I haven't had the foggiest idea since I received your call 2 days ago. Your men won't seem to tell me anything either."

Sergeant Fred sat down in between both of them and said firmly," We had orders."

"It's alright, Fred. And Robert, all in good time, all in good time. Perhaps first I'll give you a summary of the case?" Alan said, waving Fred off. Alan opened a brown paper file and looked up at Robert.

Robert nodded, keen for more details.

"On the first of June 2008, a well-known member of the powerful underground society The Ten Cuid'sons Cult was found dead in the canteen of Jurong Junior College. His gang name was Wolf, real name and age unknown. From the appearance, we figured around 21. We believe that his time of death was between 2 to 3 in the morning. Reason of death being excessive bleeding through a knife wound," Alan started, occasionally flipping through the file, though it seemed unnecessary, as he had already known all these facts by heart. "No fingerprints, hair, clothing fibre, skin flakes or any DNA of the murderer was found," he added.

"So it was a planned incident? But how did the murderer know that Wolf would be here? Considered a double-cross or trickery by rival gangs?" Robert asked inquisitively, rubbing his chin with his first and middle finger.

"Yes, we have," Alan said thoughtfully. "In fact, there's something I didn't tell you. His blood was poisoned. Forensics has confirmed the poison to be the venom of the African Cobra."

"African Cobra venom? Isn't that pretty hard to acquire? This narrows down our suspects, doesn't it?" Robert suggested.

"Yes, it does. We even go as far as to say that we believe it was executed by The Ten Cuid'sons Cult. A deadly double-cross," Alan said swiftly.

"So what are you guys waiting for? I still don't see where I fit in! Go get them then!" Robert asked, exasperated. He found himself standing up, without remembering doing so. "Don't tell me you guys can't even find them!"

"Robert! You have to understand! We need evidence to pin these guys down! If we just bust in like this, all we'll catch will be the scapegoats! And we don't want that! _I _don't want that! This time, we _must_ catch the big fish! Nothing less!" Alan retorted hotly, now also standing up, face to face with Robert.

Fred looked nervously at both of them and gulped. _This sure does not look like a good sign for a first meeting._

Alan breathed out heavily and said slowly," Sit down, Robert. I'm sorry. It's just that I've really been having a lot of stress from above regarding this case and I'm really tired-"

"I understand," Robert said with a sigh, sitting down.

"Besides," Alan said. "There's the public eye we need to consider. You might not know, but recently the Police have been having a lot of bad press due to certain escaped convicts…" His voice trailed off and he looked down at his file blankly.

"We really need to catch the tops of this gang, Robert, we really do," Alan said, half-pleading. "It involves the pride of the Police force and the public's confidence in us."

"Right," Robert said. In fact, that was all he could say. "But I still don't see where I fit in." he added a few moments later.

Alan breathed out again, and said," Come on. It's time I show the bodies. You'll understand then. Follow me."

_Bodies? I'm a lecturer! _Nonetheless, Robert stood up and followed him. This time, they were headed straight for the buzzing crowd of blue, just next to the small stage.

"Here you go," Alan directed Robert's view onto the floor, where the dead bodies of the security guard and Wolf lay.

Robert took a glance amidst the sea of blue and was transfixed, not to mention stunned, by what he saw. _Now I know where I fit in._

"He did _all_ these before he died?" Robert exclaimed, still shocked by what he saw.

"Yes, Robert. All these," Alan replied. "All these and _more._"


	4. Chapter 4

3

"This…impossible…," Robert stammered, his mind racing with thoughts, searching for a plausible explanation. "It can't be…"

Fred noticed his distraught look and walked nearer to Robert. "What's wrong? Does this remind you of something? Or perhaps it means something to you?" Fred asked, with a frown on his face, yet he spoke with uncontained excitement.

Lying there on the floor, around 1 metre away from the small stage, were the two bodies of the victims. However, they were positioned so strangely and deliberately, it did not seem like they were killed here and had fallen down naturally.

Wolf was lying perpendicular to the security guard, with his head at the security's stomach. With Wolf's trench coat opened up, the pair seemed to form a "T" shape with an enlarged bottom. What was even more disturbing about the arrangement was the large amount of blood smeared around Wolf. The blood did not appear to have bled physically. On the contrary, Wolf seemed to have done it himself, given his bloody hands. The whole scene seemed like a letter "T" above a new moon - a bloody crescent.

"Does this mean anything to you?" Fred asked again, seeing no response from Robert.

"Together, no. Separately, yes," Robert answered sharply.

"So what does this mean-" Fred continued.

"I'll explain in a while. But before that," Robert interrupted. "Alan, I assume that this place wasn't where Wolf was _attacked_, am I right?"

"Good observation, Robert. Yes, this wasn't where Wolf was attacked. He was attacked at the administrative block, about 50 metres away from here," Alan answered. _Nice choice of words. Green horns would have used the word _murdered_._

"What gave it away? I was sure I instructed my men to clean up the blood stains leading to this place."

"It won't ever be clean if you use soap. Try cola next time," Robert replied with a smile, but seeing that Alan was not amused, wiped the smile off his face.

"Er, so Wolf was attacked and crawled all the way here," Robert continued hurriedly. "Why? Was he trying to tell us something?"

"I believe he was," Fred said with a nod. "Why don't you tell us what this arrangement means and we'll all brainstorm together?"

_Here goes nothing._

"I trust that this arrangement, if I'm not wrong, would be known as the Cross of Tau," Robert said, after taking a deep breath. "Also called the St. Anthony's Cross, the Old Testament Cross, the Anticipatory Cross, the Cross Commissee, the Egyptian Cross, the Advent Cross, the Saint Francis's Cross or the Crux Commissa."

"Okay, so it's a cross with multiple names," Fred said, overwhelmed. "What does this cross symbolizes then?"

"The Cross of Tau in Christianity dates back to very ancient times," Robert explained patiently. "Today, its most common use is in reference to Saint Francis, who proclaimed to his fellow friars in his hometown of Assisi, Italy, that the robes they were wearing resembled the Cross of Tau."

"Hey," Fred looked up so suddenly from his notes that Robert blinked. "Hey, you know what, there's a Church, Kindergarten rather, nearby, known as the Saint Francis Church of Assisi! Surely this can't merely be a coincidence?"

Robert bit his lips and frowned for a second. _Coincidence?_

"Maybe. But maybe not," Robert continued. "This cross was also used in ancient societies as a symbol of _blood sacrifice_, or a symbolic death."

"Blood sacrifice? What's the significance of that?" Fred asked curiously. This case was taking a sharper turn every second.

"Well, it could probably mean he was a very special, significant, or powerful member-"

"He was none of those," a young female voice interrupted. "In fact, Wolf was a mole for the police. That's why he was killed. A warning to the rest."

Robert turned on the spot and found himself staring at a young teenage girl around 19 or 20, with a sporty built, tanned and sported a ponytail. The girl was wearing a white Polo tee, pink FBT shorts and a pair of striped Nikes. She held out a hand to Robert and smiled," Sarah. Nice to meet you, Mr Langdon."

Robert shook her hand and said," Robert. And who are you-"

"She's my niece, Robert," Alan said with a sigh. "And I've told you a hundred times, Sarah, do not disturb me at work!"

"But I do wanna help! If Mr Robert can, why can't I?" Sarah argued.

"Oh," Robert said. "It's really okay. I don't mind if she stays. The more brains, the better, isn't it?"

Alan threw a sharp look at Robert, and then looked at Sarah. "Fine. Stay if you want. But I tell you, this case is going to be dangerous. I'm not going to be responsible for you," Alan said darkly.

Sarah smiled and looked at Robert with a smug look. Robert shook his head and turned back at the bodies. Then he thought of something.

"Alan, is what she said about Wolf being a mole true?" Robert asked suspiciously.

"Yes."

Robert was infuriated. "And how do you expect me to help you with the case if you keep hiding things from me?" Robert cried out loud angrily.

"Don't worry! That's why I'm here to help you! I can tell you a lot about this case that uncle Alan doesn't want to tell you!" Sarah quipped.

"_Sarah!_" Alan shouted. "Seriously!"

"Oh shut up, uncle! Don't you want the case to be solved soon?" Sarah retorted. Alan stared at Sarah for a few seconds, then walked away, shaking his head. "Alright! Now that he's gone, I can tell you what I think I've discovered! I've been doing a bit of research myself! I aspire to be just like you, Robert!" Sarah said excitedly.

_Right._

"But what would you know? Aren't you just a normal school girl?" Robert questioned with a smile.

"Well, for starters, I know that Wolf was an ex-student of Jurong Junior College," Sarah said. "So were Fred and I."

"So?" Robert asked. "That doesn't mean anything."

"I have reasons to believe that Wolf has left clues all over the college. If you would let me explain," Sarah said.

Robert nodded, interested.

"And for your information, Robert. I'm not _just a normal school girl_," Sarah said seriously. "I was the President of the 27th Students' Council, and I know things about the school that few people would dare to imagine in their wildest daydreams."


	5. Chapter 5

4

The Boss stood in his expensive penthouse suite and took a good view of the Marina skyline out of his huge glass windows. Taking a long pull on a Japanese cigar, he strode nearer to the window and watched the Singapore Flyer rotate ever so slowly.

All his employees and rivals knew him as The Boss, out of both respect and fear. His gang, The Ten Cuidson's Cult, was new – barely 10 years in the game – but had gained its rank as the most powerful gang in both Singapore and Malaysia under his careful and cruel guidance. In the past 10 years, he has outwitted, outplayed and outlasted some of the largest players in the game, by snagging drug deals from all over Europe and America, as well as monopolizing the underground drug market in Asia.

The whole world that he has worked with was under the impression that he was this grumpy old man, sickly and about to die. Well, everyone except the second in command. That was just part of his ploy to keep his standing in the underworld strong, as well as to keep his underlings in check. _People have more respect for the old_, he reasoned. And that has worked pretty well so far. Although no one, except the second in command, has ever seen his face, _everyone_ gave him the respect. Anyone questioning his existence would be terminated immediately as a warning. Being born to a poor family in 1979, "The sickly old Boss" turns 30 this year – the year of the Golden Ox.

A knock on the door woke him from his reverie. He knew who that was. Only one person would even dare to venture this close to his residence. _You're finally here._

"Come in," The Boss turned and walked over to his table and sat down at his plump office chair. "I'm in the study."

The familiar clackering sound of stilettos hitting marble echoed throughout the apartment and finally stopped outside the study.

"You're finally here, Moonlight," The Boss looked at the figure standing just outside his door, "Come in."

The figure, affectionately known Miss Moonlight by the organization, was the gang's second in command. Many decisions were made by her, and the gang looked up to her as the leader. To the boys, The Boss was just a figure, a legend, an idol, nothing more.

A woman of 28, Moonlight had the tall, slender frame of a model, and the killer looks to top it up. Today, she was dressed in a black cardigan and a white ribbed singlet top, complete with black pint striped dress pants and her favourite red-soled killer heels from Christian Louboutin. Her jet black hair with a tint of red was long and flowing today, instead of the usual ponytail. Moonlight was not one to be trifled with, and the gang members knew that. She could be nice and warm one second and vicious the other, hence the name Moonlight – for her ever changing and unpredictable personality. Clearly, she was upset today.

"I wanted to meet you since last Saturday. Today is Monday," The Boss started, tapping his cigar ash into an ashtray.

"My flight from Paris was delayed. I'm sure you knew that," Moonlight said defiantly. With confident strides, she walked towards the study table and settled herself into a chair in front of The Boss. She was not afraid of The Boss. After all, she had known him for over 15 years and had helped to build his empire from scratch.

"Tone, Moonlight, tone," The Boss warned. "First things first. I trust you know there have some…shuffles in the gang?"

"Shuffles?" Moonlight burst out, almost in tears. "You call that a shuffle? You killed one of our guys when I wasn't around! You killed Wolf!"

"I had to. He was a mole. I thought we came to a consensus about this quite some time ago, Moonlight," The Boss said quietly.

"Yes, and that was to let _me_ handle it!" Moonlight cried, slamming the table with her palm and standing up.

"I kill him. You kill him. What's the difference?" The Boss said with a cocky sneer.

Moonlight stared at the man in disbelief, lost for words. _What's the difference? I loved him, and you knew it, you asshole._

"Oh, I get it," The Boss continued in his irritating snigger. "You couldn't bear to let him go, could you? Couldn't bear to drug his coffee, or take out his brakes! I've waited so long to get rid of him, Moonlight! A man like him would only cause the downfall of our organization! He was a bloody mole, for heaven's sake! A ticking time-bomb!"

"I would have done it," Moonlight said, choking back tears.

"Would you now? The Moonlight I know, you wouldn't," The Boss leaned back in his chair, pointing his cigar at his deputy. "Brutal as you may be, you have a soft spot for Wolf. I knew that. I could tell. That alone was dangerous. Besides, he was 7 years younger than you. And you're his superior! We can't have this in the organization, Moonlight, I told you before. Tongues will wag. You two needed to breakup. But did you listen to me? You didn't.

"Then came the news that Wolf was a mole. That made things so much clearer. Wolf had to go. He was a threat, Moonlight. I gave you one month to get rid of him. One month. Wasn't that enough? And when I saw that you could not do it, I sent you away and I sent someone else to do it."

Moonlight wiped the tears off her face. She knew what The Boss said made sense. She had seen this day coming from the very beginning and was dreading its arrival. Now that it finally came, Moonlight felt only felt sadness, nothing more. No guilt, no shock, no frustration. She was a strong woman and she would not let The Boss exploit her weaknesses anymore. _Perhaps_, she thought, _Wolf's death came at the right time._ Now, she could go about their operations with no strings tugging at the back of her mind. With all these in new resolves in mind, Moonlight took a deep breath and exhaled. Calmly, she sat back down and looked The Boss in his eyes.

"I understand," Moonlight said strongly. "But surely you didn't ask me back just to lecture me now, did you?"

"That's the Moonlight I know!" The Boss laughed. "Of course not! I need you to assemble a team and do something for me."

"And that would be…?" Moonlight questioned.

"You are the best person, other than me, to do this job, given our similar roots…," The Boss said slyly. "You will not fail me, Moonlight. You know this place so well. The police are all over the place now, I've even got news that they have hired a Cryptologist from the States. You've got to stop them."

"And this place is," Moonlight probed further. "Where Wolf was murdered?" _By you._

"Yes," The Boss replied swiftly. "Infiltrate Jurong Junior College tonight and destroy all evidence that might be of use to them. You _do_ know what evidence I'm talking about right?"

"Of course," Moonlight stood up. "How can I ever forget?"


End file.
